travail
Painful, exhausting effort
Travail is painful or laborious effort, especially work that exhausts body or spirit: the travails of raising five children alone.
The word carries a sense of suffering through difficulty rather than mere hard work.
In older usage, travail specifically meant the pains of childbirth.
The verb means to labor painfully: She travailed through the night to finish the manuscript.
State of being hard
- adversitySevere difficulty or suffering
- ordealDifficult, painful experience
- tribulationState of great distress
- trialJudicial examination of claims
hardship · woe · misfortune · affliction · burden · obstacle · setback · challenge
Strenuous, prolonged effort
- drudgeryHard, boring work
- exertionVigorous physical effort
- effortApplied energy toward goals
- workEffort toward a goal
grind · sweat · slog · backbreaking · grueling · menial · strenuous · laborious
Strenuous effort; also childbirth
- contractionsShortened word forms
- deliveryConveyance of goods
- birthingAct of delivering young
- parturitionAct of giving birth
confinement · pangs · midwife · lying-in · pushing · dilation · birth · childbearing
Intense mental suffering
- agonyExtreme physical or emotional pain
- tormentSevere prolonged suffering
- griefIntense sorrow from loss
- sorrowDeep emotional distress
heartache · despair · desolation · trauma · pain · suffering · distress · woe
Sustained resolve despite obstacles
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
- fortitudeEnduring courage under pain
- tenacityPersistent grip or resolve
- gritDetermination or abrasive particles
determination · steadfastness · patience · stamina · persistence · resolve · doggedness · toughness
difficulty
State of being hard
- adversitySevere difficulty or suffering
- ordealDifficult, painful experience
- tribulationState of great distress
trial · hardship · woe · misfortune · affliction · burden · obstacle · setback · challenge · trouble
toil
Strenuous, prolonged effort
work · grind · sweat · slog · backbreaking · grueling · menial · strenuous · laborious · plodding
labor
Strenuous effort; also childbirth
- contractionsShortened word forms
- deliveryConveyance of goods
- birthingAct of delivering young
parturition · confinement · pangs · midwife · lying-in · pushing · dilation · birth · childbearing
anguish
Intense mental suffering
- agonyExtreme physical or emotional pain
- tormentSevere prolonged suffering
- griefIntense sorrow from loss
sorrow · heartache · despair · desolation · trauma · pain · suffering · distress · woe · lamentation
perseverance
Sustained resolve despite obstacles
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
- fortitudeEnduring courage under pain
- tenacityPersistent grip or resolve
grit · determination · steadfastness · patience · stamina · persistence · resolve · doggedness · toughness · mettle
- emploiemploye, interim, CV, candidature, prime
- sufferingagony, anguish, misery, pain, torment
- laborlabor, labor union, work, labor force, laborers
- prayerintercession, prayer meeting, prayer circle, prayer group, prayer circles
travailcomfort
Ease or soothing relief
relief · solace · tranquility · peace · security
travailplay
Recreation or staged drama
fun · recreation · amusement · diversion · entertainment